Montreal is missing America's pastime. Rob Manfred is offering hope for a possible reunion.
Before baseball returns to the city, though, a firm strategy for a new stadium must be in place, the new MLB commissioner told The Canadian Press on Monday.
MORE: Big O one of worst stadiums of all time | Best NL uniforms of all time
“The key thing in Montreal would be to have a plan for an adequate facility that could support baseball over the long haul,” Manfred told the CP. "I don't expect people to go into the ground and build a facility without some sort of commitment that they are going to get a team. But I do think that you need a plan, and a commitment to how that plan is going to be executed."
Architectural drawings of Labatt Park, a proposed 36,000-seat, open-air stadium in downtown Montreal, were unveiled years before the Expos moved to Washington in 2004. (via Hardballtalk.com)
Montreal will host two exhibition games between the Reds and Blue Jays at Olympic Stadium on April 3-4. More than 80,000 tickets have been sold.
"The exhibition games last year (between the Mets and Blue Jays), and how well they were attended (96,350 for the two games) and at least the early reports on the games this year demonstrate a real interest in major league baseball and the Montreal market," Manfred told the CP. "We find that to be very interesting and exciting."
Manfred expressed baseball's desire to make the sport work in existing markets, but he also left the door open for troubled franchises, such as the Rays and A's, to leave bad stadium situations. He also repeated his opinion that international markets are the best options if moves are needed.
"Mexico and Canada present the most fertile ground just in terms of the level of baseball interest and the proximity to our existing franchises," Manfred told the CP. "But we have always been realistic. At the end of the day, relocation to another market could be the only solution."
Sporting News Media's Tom Gatto contributed to this report.